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| Eating snow at Castle Hill |
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| Queen of Castle Hill |
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| Kate with a possum in her ear |
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| Pre-Dive |
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| Art beach prior to the sand fly incident |
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| The reason for the sandfly incident... |
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| Pancake Rocks |
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| Swing bridge near Blenheim |
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| Sea kayaking in Abel Tasman |
Log 13
My next entry was reserved for my good friend Kate that came to visit me during our ‘winter’. I found out about a month before that she was heading over and I could barely contain my excitement! About 8 years ago, Kate was one of three roommates that I lived with during my study abroad in Ireland and has continued to be a partner in adventurous crime ever since!!
Kate walked out of the International terminal looking bright and cheery and only slightly cross-eyed from the 24 hours of travel to get to New Zealand with its many connections. Trying to optimize Kate’s time in NZ we headed over the Antarctic center just kitty corner from the airport round-about and headed into ‘experience’ the Antarctic. After the winter room that gets down to a big -20C (big deal after Wisconsin, really) and where we slid down the ice slide, we viewed the preserved critters and plants that come from the pole, then visited the rescued Fairy penguins with various orthopedic ailments. My favorite part was the chart on the wall that explained their handicaps using their color coded leg bands for identification. I took her into the city center to see the Haka dancers and the open air market before heading down to Ashburton for a long awaited nap, hot shower, and dinner with friends. The next day we headed to Mt. Somers and did the Sharplin Falls walk and went on to Castle Hill, near Arthur’s Pass. Now understanding that Kate and I together are really just oversized children is should come to no surprise that with the bit of snow on the ground and it being ‘winter’ in NZ, we had to have a snowball fight as well as attempt to climb a tree on the way to Castle Hill. We also made video logs documenting Kate getting lost in the New Zealand tundra… maybe ya just had to be there but it was real funny!
Our next destination was Dunedin…. Oo Dunedin. After the trip down the coast making Hobbiton and Lord of the Rings jokes, we climbed on the Moeraki boulders and collected shells, before heading into the city of Dunedin. Once there we took a tour of the Cadbury Chocolate factory then headed out on the town for a few beers, dinner at an Indian restaurant, and then out for more beers in an Irish Pub. It was quite early, since Dunedin is a college town and the students don’t emerge till 11pm, we were 2 of 6 people in the pub. As it so happens, there were 3 Irish lads having a few pints after work and somehow we ended up chatting with them and partaking in free pints.
This was the night we learned of the funniest job we have EVER heard of!! The lads were telling us how they had just been hired by a conservation group to go to the airport runways near the coast and pick up penguins, because ya see these penguins like to watch the airplanes fly over their heads and having to look straight up makes them fall over and they can’t stand up again without help. So for some amount of $/hour they were going to start doing this a few days a week. Picking up penguins as a profession. By the next morning and hours of letting the alcohol metabolize, we were both convinced it was a made-up story from the ‘Gift of Gab’ Irish, but it didn’t stop us from pissing ourselves laughing re-telling the story and doing the action associated with the telling of the story. I can’t resist a good story, even a made up one.
The next day we drove to Te Anau on our way to Milford Sound. We stopped at the wildlife reserve and viewed the strange birds that inhabit New Zealand. Kea, weka, takahe, wood pigeons, kaka, and many more… We stopped at the movie theater and watched the Fjordlands video that took you on a musical helicopter piloted journey over the fjords and sounds that was amazing. Now, being winter, and non-tourist season in Te Anau, EVERYTHING is shut down! A few restaurants staying open but don’t physically open till 5:30 and when they did open, we were literally the only customers at the Chinese restaurant. But, since were the only patrons, the space heater pointed at OUR table so our plates no longer had frost on them. There is no central heating in New Zealand, as it doesn’t really freeze I suppose they don’t really need them, but it does get chilly enough to warrant heating so there are ‘heat pump’ units on the walls of rooms, space heaters, fire places and stoves.
We headed up the Milford Rd towards Milford sound, and stopped at Lake Gunn when it started to sprinkle with rain. It only added to the ambiance of the place though and we thoroughly enjoyed the view and the stillness of the lake with the mountains mirrored in it. At one point we stopped and did a short walk through the rainforest vegetation acting like hobbits and Lord of the Rings characters just because we could. Then realizing it was the 4th of July, we came out of the bush forest singing patriotic songs like America the Beautiful, and saying the Pledge of Allegiance.
We made it to Queenstown and decided to head out for a drink with the ski bums that were packed into the small town. We went into the world bar where a Brazilian guy kept asking to dance with me. Now, normally I’m game, dancing is good fun and hey the South American’s HAVE rhythm. This particular Brazilian just happened to be about 4.5 ft tall… his eyes were at an inconvenient level for close dancing and when I kept running to the toilet every 10 min to try and get away from his attentions he turned to Kate and said, “I theenk your friend no like me, she keep running away.” Sorry bub.
Upon Kate’s arrival in New Zealand I informed her that I thought we should give skydiving a go and that she was going to go with me. I expected her complete refusal but to my great surprise and relief she said it actually sounded fun! I had been throwing the idea around to try skydiving for a few years and my new adrenaline charged ambition that brought me to New Zealand was ready to give it the green light! We called and booked the spots and started preparing ourselves to jump out of a plane! They dressed us in flight suits, and clear goggles and gave us the run-down of how it would work as well as informing us of the price. Ugh, that was the only depressing bit. BUT as the dutiful tourists says, “When will I ever do THIS again!?” So up we went to the highest jump of 15,000 ft for a mean $525 dollars. Hands down the most expensive DVD I’ve ever purchased. I was an un-paid actress in the lead role, but it was still one of the most amazing experiences that I’ve ever done to date. After my last encounter with a Brazilian, I was relieved that the Brazilian I was strapped to for my tandem jump was about 6’8” and 250lbs. There’s really no refusing to do anything when you are strapped to a guy like that and he’s loading you in a plane that he WILL be jumping out of. Better to sit back, relax, and go with the flow. As the plane ascended and we marveled as the snow capped mountains that surrounded us, we kept trying to push our buttons and make us nervous. Kate was looking a little bit more worried the higher we got, but I’m pretty sure my smile just kept getting bigger and bigger. The first 4 teams jumped, Kate and her dude dropped, and then it was my turn. You put your feet under the plane and head back with your arms across your chest, and then all of a sudden you are falling with a 250lb Brazilian on your back! Cheeks and nostrils flaring as in the cartoons, we dropped for a few seconds till I was ordered to put my arms out in the fall position, “Like wings!” he kept yelling. So then we were falling with arms out like a bird, watching the landscape fly by and the thunder of the wind wizzing past my ears. 5,000ft later the parachute comes out and we started our descent to the ground and we got a way better view of the south island, sea to sea. You also hang in your harness like a wee baby, or if you know the cartoon, Bucky from Get Fuzzy in his harness on the way to the vet. There’s something about that type of harness that you feel completely incapacitated. Nearing the ground, with legs extended I was stopped by the friction of my butt sliding along the ground, after which I leapt up and attempted a victory dance with my very numb limbs that had previously been hanging in a harness. Flippin amazing!!!! Everyone should do this.
Now just down the road, was Puzzling World, which we had been reading in our guide book. Optical illusions, and a real life labyrinth, we had to stop in. It might have been cool, but the adrenaline rush from the skydiving was a little more amazing than anything a labyrinth could have evoked. Plus 4 buses of screaming school kids showed up and we definitely had lost our patience for that.
Heading up to the illustrious West Coast of New Zealand next, we fully expected to hit the wall of rain that is usually always present in this part of NZ. Luckily we only had a few patches of drizzle, and being winter it was probably the drier season for the west coast anyway. The climate and vegetation is rainforest like there is a visual change in the trees and the size of the ferns and bush as you pass INTO the west coast. Our most important adventure and challenge of the west coast was undoubtedly the sand flies. So a sand fly to my North American readers is reminiscent of a knat, very small, can’t hear them coming, and generally a flying annoyance. But don’t be fooled by their small appearance, unlike the knat, they have a nasty bite and they go after knuckles, joints, and limbs with big vessels. The worst part is that you don’t feel them right away like a mosquito, it’s the next day that you realize you’ve been bitten and you start itching like a mad person. To the point of broken blood vessels and bruising in my case cuz I can’t just leave them alone like those with more will power. I had literally just finished telling Kate the sand fly warning when we encountered our first hoard of them.
Along the coast we had stopped to see the beach and the polished white stones and beach wood that the many passing tourists had created into art all along the beach. People had stopped and stacked the stones and drift wood into abstract designs as well as write on the smooth white rocks something of their adventures, or where they were from. Being more interested in viewing the art and not remembering the invisible sand flies we forgot to shut the car door. Upon returning to the car and climbing in we were greeted by no less than 1000 of this horrid little bugs primed and ready to feet on their new trapped prey. Kate freaks out and immediately covers herself with scarves and coats and sunglasses while simultaneously swatting the midgets with the maps. We rolled down windows and shooed them out while driving, we even stopped and opened the back hatch then continued driving for a bit. By the time we reached the next petrol station the inside windows were covered in little sandfly skeletons and their body juices. We purchased some window cleaner and at least gave the station attendant a good laugh as we explained our story. True to form though, it was the next day when we realized how many of the little bastards had had their last meal. The most annoying was the one on top of my head. Never comb a sandfly bite, it will itch for HOURS!
We continued our journey north, to the Franz Josef glacier, and the Fox glacier. We did a short walk up to the base of the glacier and learning many interesting facts about glaciers. As well as being warned that if some ice falls into the glacial river, it can cause a surge that will drown people and stick figures.
We also stopped at the Pancake Rocks, which are the striated rock formations that have formed with blow-holes from the sea and at high tide, you can stand out on the rocks and get really really wet!
We reached Greymouth thinking it was the Christchurch of the west coast but quickly found out it too closes down after about 3pm even on a Saturday night. But as Kate and I were both fighting the flu, we were quite happy getting a pizza and going to bed. Kate’s ear had also been plugged since our skydive and we decided that on the way down a possum had crawled in and set up camp. By the time we reached Nelson we decided we ought to find her a doctor and find out if there was something medical to be done about getting the possum out of her middle ear. Since I hadn’t ever used the New Zealand medical system, that was an adventure in itself getting an appointment as a foreigner. We came away from the doctor with all sorts of drugs for Kate, ones we have purchased attempting self medication, as well as prescription based healing.
From Nelson we drove to Blenheim and did a self guided tour of the wine country. We stopped into several wineries and tasted the local specialty of Sauvignon blanc, as well as Pinot noir, Reislings, and many others that I can’t even spell let alone remember what they tasted like. I’m a Cabernet Sauvignon girl and over here that means I get Aussie wine. My taste only applies to the $6.99 to $8.99 wines on the bottom shelf though.
Back to Nelson, we headed up to Abel Tasman National Park and hired sea kayaks for the day and went on a guided tour out on the sea to have lunch on the beach of Adele Island. Normally a summer sport, the sea kayaking also goes through the winter because Nelson is the warmest part of New Zealand year round because of its proximity to warm ocean currents or something like that. I still believe there is no way to accurately predict weather no matter what in this country. My fellow Michiganders, its even worst that Michigan! True! We kayaked around, had our lunch, asked our kiwi adventure tourism guide if you can indeed get paid to pick up penguins at the airport, and shared many American tourist jokes. I think he gave us the ok that we weren’t the norm… YES! We’re starting to blend in!
Back down the coast we went, to Kaiakoura just north of Christchurch, that would bring us a complete circle from where we started. In Kaiakoura we stopped at a seal colony where we stood a few meters away from little fur seals and watched the pups playing in the trees just across the road. It was amazing to get that close to them. The pups were being weaned, the females getting their strength back, and the males just waiting for mating season to start.
Back in Christchurch we attempted to go to the famed Soul Square for drinks and dancing but never made it there. Our first stop was an Irish bar on Manchester street that some of the sessioners I knew were playing in a ballad band. By the time we had napped from our drive down and gone out the place was packed and we joined the fury. Almost immediately I was cornered by a Pom (British dude) claiming to be the software engineer that created Grand Theft Auto and that he was a self made millionaire… riiiiight. Being the ubber polite person I am, I sat and listened to him literally SCREAM his life story in my ear for an HOUR. All I recalled from the mind-numbing, most likely false story, is that he really needed a shower. Kate was busy talking to a local rugby team that had come in, and I quickly played the social card and blew-off the computer geeks for the meat-heads and joined Kate in hopes that my ear would recover. Turned out the coach was a sheep farmer out on the peninsula so I talked with him about farming for the rest of the evening!
Finally back home to Ashburton the next day, we settled into my couch with some movies and Sharky’s fish and chips… best chip shop in town. A big serving of breaded fish and lots o chips for $3.60.
We ended Kate’s time in New Zealand with a session at Bailies bar in Christchurch, where I met the guys from a Bluegrass band based in Chch called The Johnny Possum band. I chatted with them for a bit cuz they were looking for a new fiddle player. They guys in the session had told them I knew some bluegrass so I was hunted down for an audition. I haven’t played the stuff in years, but hey its MUSIC! Be bold, be daring. Go big, or go home. So I might be joining a Kiwi bluegrass band!!
